Welcome to the Norfolk Island Museum's blog. We are lucky to be located in the most beautiful part of a stunning island in the South Pacific. We are a little island, but our history and stories are great - from Polynesian and convict settlements to the home of the Bounty mutineers. Hopefully you'll enjoy our stories.

Thursday, December 4, 2014

The museum received a generous donation
this week from Peter Rossiter, great-grandson of Thomas Rossiter. In 1859 Thomas
was the first ‘outsider’ to be appointed on Norfolk Island by Governor Denison
when he took up the position of government Storekeeper and school teacher. There
are a number of descendants of Thomas and his wife Charlotte Bissox on Norfolk
Island today as two of their sons married two of Isaac Robinson and Hannah
Quintal’s daughters. There are also today descendants of Thomas’s sister Jane
on Norfolk, who came here with him and married Franklin Bates.

Nancy and Peter Rossiter with Museum curator Lisa Richards

Peter was born on Norfolk and spent most of
his school years here until moving away soon after the War with his family. He and
wife Nancy now live in Ballina and have regularly visited the island over the
years. A number of years ago they donated the surveyors chain used to mark out
much of Norfolk Island and especially the Mission land; and a steelguard used
by Isaac Robinson to weigh things such as bags of wheat etc. Peter’s donation
this week includes important original documents including Land Grants, Supplementary
Instructions to Thomas’ role; and the 1871 certificate appointing him as
Registrar of Norfolk Island, issued by Samuel Richard Earl of Belmore Governor and
Commander of Norfolk Island.

Thomas’s job would have been a difficult
one. Not only did he initially conspicuously reside in Government House, but he
was paid substantially above anyone else on the island. He had to displace
George Hunn Nobbs as schoolteacher and undertake duties as custodian of
property. Denison required him to implement a “marked and precise line of demarcation between public and private
property”, which included animals as well as structures. There were many
actions that he had to take that would have been unpopular, however he was a
good teacher and hard working, and was eventually accepted by the islanders.
Today we especially remember him for his role in starting an agricultural
competition that became part of our annual Agricultural and Horticultural Show.

The “Supplementary Instructions to Mr
Rossiter” is an interesting document. It is undated and initialed JY at the
bottom of each page, no doubt being Sir John Young who became Governor after
Sir William Denison in 1861. It is likely that this document was drawn up in
the mid 1860s. It begins with the statements: “The Instructions given by Sir William Denison are to remain in force
with the trifling exception hereafter mentioned which is adopted at the
insistence of the several parties concerned but I think it necessary to add in
order to avoid any ambiguity as a misapprehension that the phrase ‘Government
property’ signifies property belonging to the Crown…The cattle, sheep, horses,
houses, tools etc. etc. in trusted to the Storekeepers care must therefore be
considered as the property of the Crown..”

Young outlines that monies accrued from
fines will remain in the hands of the Chief Magistrate and be expended in the
repair of the piers and bridges. He then goes on to answer specific questions
that Rossiter had put to him. The first query asks if the repair of Government
House, the Church, School House, Shearing Shed and the Cemetery should be from
the Public Funds. Young confirms that they are, which includes the buildings
and fences, and that Rossieter will be responsible for having the work done
economically and well. “The Chief
Magistrate may select the workmen in the first instance, but he may not select
any whom Mr Rossiter objects, or whom he thinks unlikely to work diligently or
efficiently”.

In answer to the next question it is also
confirmed that the roads and drains should be kept in repair at the community’s
cost and royalties charged on the sale of sawn timber in the former crankmill
will be put to the upkeep of the piers and bridges.

An interesting question asked of the
Governor is for approval of a proposition put forward by the Chief Magistrate
for the “consideration of the people by
Bishop Patterson respecting a Melanesian College or school..”. The answer
comes back “I am not in favour of it –
any such proposition should first be submitted to the Governor before it is
proposed to the people. The Chief Magistrate should not submit any proposition
of so great importance to the formal vote of the people without previous
communication with the Governor, and receiving his sanction to that effect”.

Rossiter’s powers as invested from the
Governor as spelt out here indicate the authority he would have had over many
aspects of life on the island. This is an import historical document in itself,
and together with other documents, letters, Land Grants, sale and lease of land
documents, make for an important addition to our collection. Thanks to earlier
donations by Peter and also from Jill McDowell of a large number of items owned
by one of Thomas’ daughters Ethel Rossiter (nee Robinson), our museum is
fortunate in having a large collection of Rossiter artefacts and stories.